For 37 minutes at Hull City's KCOM Stadium on Saturday afternoon, it felt like we had been transported back to the early months of Burton Albion's debut Championship campaign.

The Brewers - after an admittedly shaky opening - were involved in a breathless, end-to-end contest against a quality outfit. Chances came and went at one end, before possession moved pacily downfield for the other side to come close.

Back in the 3-5-2 that served them well for the first half of 2016/17, Nigel Clough 's men were stretching the recently-relegated Tigers, the pace of Lloyd Dyer on the left and their balance in the midfield making them a big danger as play got broken up.

But in the time it took for Jackson Irvine - a pivotal figure in that 37-minute period - to stretch out a leg and clip Jarrod Bowen as the Hull midfielder got to a loose ball first on the edge of the hosts' box, that enthralling contest was dealt a severe blow.

Irvine had just curled in a sublime equaliser - his first of the season after bagging 10 for Albion last term - when he committed that foul on Bowen and was shown his second yellow card of the game by referee Darren England.

It reduced Burton to 10 men and was, in the eyes of Clough, the biggest turning point in a high-octane first half that featured many.

The first came within two minutes of kick-off, and perhaps provided the travelling Brewers faithful with a hint that their first ever trip to Hull was not to be a productive one.

Burton Albion players after the 4-1 loss to Hull City (Image: James Wilson/Epic Action Imagery)

Stephen Warnock was handed the captain's armband as John Mousinho dropped to the bench as one of two Albion changes from the previous weekend's opening-day loss to Cardiff City, Dyer also making way as Hope Akpan and Tom Naylor came in.

Those alterations also brought with them that return to 3-5-2, with skipper-for-the-day Warnock stationed as left-wing-back, Naylor, Kyle McFadzean and Jake Buxton selected as the three centre-halves in front of Stephen Bywater.

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And it was Warnock who, attempting to take on Tigers left-back Ola Aina, appeared to roll his ankle innocuously and went down in a crumpled heap within 120 seconds of kick-off. Despite returning to the field momentarily following some treatment, he was soon signalling to the bench and coming off inside five minutes.

The full extent of the damage will likely be discovered in the week, according to Clough - although he will not be involved in Tuesday's trip to Middlesbrough.

Given the season-ending injury suffered by record signing Liam Boyce before a ball had even been kicked in competitive football this season, Burton will be hopeful that there is to be no long-term absence for Warnock as well.

They would not deserve such rotten luck.

Fortune was certainly not to be on their side at the KCOM, though.

Within two minutes of Warnock's exit, the Brewers found themselves a goal down.

Hull had fair raced from the blocks, and when Markus Henriksen's fierce rising volley cannoned back off the crossbar, Abel Hernandez was lurking to convert the rebound via his head, despite a fine effort from Bywater.

The Uruguayan forward looked to have strayed offside as Henriksen let fly, and Clough certainly believed that the goal should have been ruled out - but no flag was shown.

There was no flag, either, when Hernandez got through again minutes later as Leonid Slutsky's side showed an intensity perhaps unsurprising of a team looking to make an early statement following relegation last term.

Abel Hernandez of Hull City (Image: James Wilson/Epic Action Imagery)

On that occasion, the Hull forward miscued his shot and sent it wide. It was the same outcome when the irrepressible Kamil Grosicki, a menace down Burton's right flank all afternoon, burst through a gap and rounded Bywater, only to slide a finish into the side-netting under pressure from McFadzean.

But just as in those thrilling early-season games from last season involving the Brewers, Clough's men gave as good as they got.

Rattled but not overcome by Hull's fast start, Burton began to play some football themselves, the regular outlet of Dyer on the left allowing him to cause the home defence problems with his pace.

Some good build-up down the left led to an opening for Lucas Akins, who latched onto Irvine's block, twisted and placed a solid shot into the bottom right corner. This time, though, the linesman's flag was up in the air.

That was another decision that Clough took issue with - and replays afterwards showed he was a good distance onside when the ball broke to him from Irvine's boot.

Marvin Sordell - Akins' strike partner for the day - also came close to opening his account, receiving the ball with back to goal and shooting on the turn, the ball flying just over.

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Albion needed to take a chance. That certainly was a lesson they were regularly taught in 2016/17.

And they heeded those teachings in memorable fashion.

Dyer was again involved, breaking down the left and drilling in a low cross for Matty Lund, starting as right-wing-back as Akpan came into that midfield three with Irvine and Luke Murphy.

The Northern Ireland international took one controlling touch and shaped to shoot, only to see two defenders bearing down on him. Instead, he laid possession back for Irvine, who had taken up a position on the edge of the home box.

With one flowing drive, the ex-Ross County man had curled an unstoppable finish through a glut of bodies, past Allan McGregor in the Hull goal and into the net.

Burton Albion midfielder Jackson Irvine celebrates his equalizer against Hull City at the KCOM Stadium (Image: James Wilson/Epic Action Imagery)

Irvine had already made a few telling runs from deep as Albion began to grow into the game - but that finish was the starkest reminder of the season so far of why his name has been linked with so many clubs this summer.

His impact on this game, though, was almost done when the ball hit the net.

Only five minutes later came that foul on Bowen and, with the 24-year-old already booked, his bath was to be an extra early one at the KCOM.

The injury to Warnock and a disallowed goal for Akins - which Clough said post-match he thought was well onside - felt like turning points, but this red card was undeniably crucial in the context of the game.

Hull had been rocked by the equaliser and the Brewers were finding more space in which to attack. Suddenly, it was the Tigers who had extra room to use.

The actual challenge that saw Irvine dismissed was a soft one, a stretch for possession rather than a genuinely cynical trip.

The challenge that saw Jackson Irvine sent off against Hull City (Image: James Wilson/Epic Action Imagery)

But given Bowen was looking to start a counter from deep, England clearly felt there was enough reason to dismiss the Australian. With him went Albion's momentum.

Burton saw the rest of the first half out with minimal fuss, and talk at half-time would have been about ratcheting up the pressure on the hosts by keeping it tight after the break and ensuring the game stayed level for as long as possible.

That plan quickly fell through.

Grosicki - probably the player of the game despite Hernandez's eventual hat-trick heroics - made it 2-1 when climbing unchallenged to flick home Aina's well-placed cross on 50 minutes, before Hernandez got his second on 55, drilling a low effort under Bywater after Buxton's attempted clearance dropped into his path.

It felt like damage limitations at that stage, Tom Flanagan introduced for his first appearance since rejoining the Brewers last week to shore up the defence and allow Dyer to move further forward again.

Tom Flanagan on his return to action with Burton Albion (Image: James Wilson/Epic Action Imagery)

Not that Albion would see much ball in the Hull half, despite the unending efforts of Akins. His third full 90 in the space of a week saw him spend much of the game chasing down lost causes and defending from the front, showing tireless energy but unable to affect the game in tough circumstances.

At the other end, Bywater was the man to ensure Albion's goal difference did not take too much of an early-season hammering, brilliantly standing up to three close-range efforts and making commanding saves, including one to deny debutant Sebastian Larsson from inside eight yards.

He was eventually beaten again when Hernandez found more space from a fine Sam Clucas ball to roll home a fourth. Given their second-half dominance and Albion's travails when down to 10 men, that was probably about right.

As was a recurring theme for Burton last term, the final scoreline did not tell the full story.

But Hull could have done nothing about Irvine's red, and they showed their quality in responding to that by taking the game emphatically out of Albion's hands in the second half.

The Brewers will have to hope that, after three games in a week and 50-odd minutes down to 10 men has still left them with enough energy to challenge Hull's fellow relegated side Middlesbrough on Tuesday.